Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-05-07
THE VINEYARDS.
Their Present Condition Condensed
Grape Must for Enropean Markets

Grape Must for European Markets.
Recent visitors to Napa valley and other
vineyard districts have reported that MANY
vines show the marks OF Jack Frosts
| fingers, the foliage looking very black or
| brown in places. Last Saturday morning
there was a hard frost in portions of the
Napa valley, and on some of the hill vine
yards to the eastward. Respecting the re-
ports, Executive Officer John Wheeler, of
the Viticultural Commission, saws that his
information is that no damage was done by
the frost that can affect the vines seriously.
or inlure the grape crop. Only the tips of
the leaves and points of shoots were
plnched by the frosty fingers. The grapes
are too far advanced in growth to be af-
fected to any extent by light frosts. No
| reports of serious injury have come
| to viticultural headquarters On the
| contrary, all reports and forecasts of
the seasons grape crop are of the most en-
couraging nature. The prospects are that
the yield will be larger than ever taken
| from CALIFORNIA; vineyards. This is the
| time of the year when vine-growers are
| often afflicted by pests or vineyards are de-
vastated by disease. But so far this season
| exceptionally few reports of diseases or
pests have come to headquarters. The cut
worm and army-worm have been busy
doing some pruning and making their liy-
| ing Oft the vines in certain districts, but are
not reported to have done any appreciable
damage and the vine growth is now so
large that there is little damage to be feared
for the future.
Next week it is expected that DIR. julius
Sprlngmuehl, German chemist, and the
| originator of the noted process of must
condensation. will arrive in this city. He
| comes at the invitation of many State viii
rnlfnricfS with ho int
ing somewhere in the State factory for
must condensation, with the design of ship
ment to European countries. He is sup
ported by some German capitalists, and
| there is little doubt of the favorable out
come of his project. Fresno is spoken of
as the probable site of the proposed in
dustry. This chemist claims that by this
method all disagreeable taste to the wine
made from the must is avoided. The must
is reduced in bulk by the condensation to
about one-third. The peculiar sirupy sub
stance that is obtained contains the grape
sugar and component parts of wine, ex-
ceptng water and alcohol. The idea is
that this condensed must obtained in To-
| callty where grapes are cheap and abund-
ant, may be shipped in kegs to any part of
the world, and there wine may be made at
pleasure. Experiments with this method
of wine manufacture have been most sat
isfactory. 1t is claimed that all Northern
Europe oilers market for this product
this wine in concentrated form. The vine
yards of France cannot begin to supply the
wine demand of the Continent, most of the
French product being used within France.
The proposed manufacture will bear the
name OF this State, and will, ii is believed
advertise widely its vineyard resources.
Viticultural Officer Wheeler is at work
Inv Aayir1r Ill !
culation report on THE Oidium and the
Use Of Sulphur" The oidiuna is the tech
nical name to the mildew common on this
coast. Really, according to the authorities,
1t is not mildew, as that vine-plague is
known in France and elsewhere Mildew
properly is the technical Peronospera uiticola
"a pest most dreaded, compared to which
our common oidium mildew is as nothing;
for the latter is readily remedied by sui
phur application, while the other is almost
irremediable. Commonly the two plaques
to vines are designated by their character
istics as the powdery mildew (oidiun) and
the downy mildew fper0noSpera). The
best method of sulphuring and treating
vines will be considered in detail in the
proposed publication with quotations from
the latest foreign authorities
Vineyards near San Diego and the Vi
cinity of Los Angeles have recently been
troubled with a peculiar disease. In a
healthy vineyard several vines would die
with no perceptible cause. The trouble is
believed to be what is known in France as
the Folte tag or crazy Vine" as it has
been called. w. G. Klee, State Inspector
of Fruit Pests, who has only returned re-
Gently from an inspection of the afflicted
districts, believes the trouble due indirectly
| to remarkable yield of the vines two sea-
| period of drought.
Circulars and invitations have come 10
viticultural headquarters for grand uni
versal exposition to be held in Paris in
1889. 1t is expected that the wine-makers
of the State will make arrangements to
send to the whey ard land of Europe large
exhibit, showing what the Western vine
yard land can produce i'll competitions.
| F. Bulletin.